Lady Time
by soshi185
Summary: When Lucy was a child her mother taught her one thing - she should always accept the past. But this future can't be accepted. The Time Travelers, Twelve Gates of Zodiac, mysteries and her life . Now everything is in her hands. AU, Nalu and other pairings.
1. Stranger & Fire

My first fanfic in a Fairy Tail category, and it's a multichapter story... I wonder if it's a good idea to start something new, but well, we will see.

I feel I should say some things now. One, it's based on the recent FT chapters. So, it contains the time travels and some canonic stuff, however, it won't be a AU retelling of the story or something like that. The plot will be different, and I hope good enough.

Two, in this fanfic I included some... weird family affinities. And when I say weird, I mean really non-canonic. Also, most of the main couples will appear here, but be prepared for minor cracks. I think I should warn you now, but I won't spoil - read and find out later.

Three, my beta reader is - and I hope will be - amazing** Featherain**. She did a great job and I can't describe how much she helped me. I'm very grateful and invite you to visit her profile.

Four, my younger sister edited the cover pic, all credits for her and Mashima-sensei.

I think it's all. Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima, I'm just a fan.

Read, review, enjoy~

* * *

Lucy had first seen the strange boy on Tuesday.

He was standing in the school yard during a history lesson.

The blond girl had tried really, really hard, to remember the details of the French Revolution, but in spite of the desperate attempts, her mind was continuously forever circling between the thoughts of lunch break, a rather interesting book resting in her bag and homework. Bored, she started to play with a pink pen and from time to time wrote some very chaotic notes such as, '14th July - Bastille - destruction '. She _was_ going to complete them later, equipped with a history book and all. But now now she was rather interested in drawing the intricate designs on the margins of her papers -a mix of flowers, hearts and unidentifiable swirls with triangles inscribed in the loops. It was then did she see him.

He stood in the backyard -next to the fence, mind you, and sitting by the window Lucy had a great view on him. Her eyes had been instantly drawn and curious to the large, black cape which the person was wearing. True, the it wasn't even summer yet, but this year's spring was warm enough, and so the schoolgirls from the Private School For Talented Girls in Magnolia were allowed to opt out of jackets in pale red color, which had then reminded Lucy about the tomato soup administered on Fridays in the school canteen, making her commit to only wearing the white blouses with completely mismatched yellow-and-white ties and black pleated skirts.

In short, no one in their right mind would choose to wear the long black coat that would reach to their ankles in such weather, not to mention the heavy hood hiding his eyes. It raised suspicions and caused anxiety in her, and although she doubted that he was a crazy psychopath about to plant a bomb under their school, it was still an unusual sight. She stared at the stranger until the end of the lesson, quickly coming to the simple conclusion that his outfit was strange. Not only did it look uncomfortable in this weather, but it didn't even resemble a normal raincoat that even the thriftiest person would ever wear. In Lucy's opinion, it looked more like a traveling cloak that had popped out from the movies - elegant and tasteful. It even appeared to be a gold brooch on the neck, but it was hard to judge from this distance.

As soon as the school bell had rang, announcing some freedom until more confinement in classrooms, Lucy almost immediately felt someone's hands wrapping around her neck. She shuddered with fear so violently that she had to hold on to the bench so as to not fall off the chair. Standing behind her was a tanned girl with thick curly black hair who then burst into laughter.

"Why have you been so _absent_, Lucy?" Cana asked cheerfully, and with mock reproach, "From whom should I take the memo, huh?"

"I'm sorry," Lucy said with a faint smile.

"You better study hard, otherwise we're both gonna' fail. Really, I'm not a good example, you know?" she said in an idle manner as she tugged Lucy's bright yellow hair, making the bright eyed girl laugh along.

Lucy liked Cana. She suspected that they had bonded due to their similar family situations at first. Lucy's mother had died four years ago due to breast cancer, Cana lost her mother as a child, in a car accident. Sure, somethings triggered them and they had to cry in each other arms, but most of the time... it was alright. Like some sort of past life they had long thrown away.

Now both raised by each of their single fathers who worked practically all day,Cana had never bothered to mention much about her dad, but from what Lucy knew he spent most of his time abroad, on various business trips. The girl was as interested in business dealings as much as caculating the volume of a pot on their teacher's desk. Yet Lucy had the impression that Cana was complaining about her father because it was like some sort of unspoken rule, when truth to be told her relationship with her father were a lot better than Lucy's.

Cana walked around her slowly before sitting with her legs crossed. Lucy sat down beside her, staring out the window behind as Cana followed lead.

"Who do you think he is?" Lucy asked softly, her eyes flickering back and forth from the figure.

Cana quickly eyed the school yard. As the corner of her lips tilted downwards in a slight frown, Lucy knew her friend could see exactly who she was seeing as well. Just as expected, the boy was still in his usual position standing awkwardly in some stiff manner while leaning against the fence.

"Maybe it's a secret admirer of one of the students from our school. Like, you know, mine? Who is too shy to talk to the lady of his heart, so in camouflage he's watching her?"

"I don't think that hiding his face will suddenly raise his chances with any girl, but tastes are different."

"Come on, Lucy! Mysterious strangers are always desirable, stop pretending! I'm sure you would like him to pull that stupid hood and say a confession," Cana teased playfully, giving Lucy a nudge. The one that was like "you can deceive your father, a teacher and a priest in the confessional, but I've know you for years" kind of nudge. Lucy only blushed slightly in response.

"Ok, but later you can't cry because a psychopath harassed you," she snorted.

"I've never despised a handsome one," Cana blinked innocently, examining her nails.

On one hand, as the blond girl bit her lip in hesitation, Lucy had mixed feelings. She considered it natural that after seeing a complete stranger in some weird disguise watching your general area, you'd feel some anxiety paired with interest. On the other hand Cana's teasing had also given Lucy some confidence. She admitted she had the tendency to panic and exaggerate small issues. Cana had usually stated that she _was_ too serious with an inability to relax.

The boy didn't seem to be at all alarmed at the sight of two teenage girls whispering urgently while peeking at him. Lucy had never met anyone who would be lurking in on her life, but came to the conclusion that in such moments the villain should escape,not stand there petrified like a statue.

* * *

"Cana, do you think he's still here?" Lucy asked when they left the school, trying to be natural.

Cana had ignored this problems for most of the day, focusing only on what she would do if a stranger decided to confess his ever so undying love. And of course, adding in that Lucy seriously needed to find some boyfriend, so she would have some better things to think about. Or talking about the perfect meeting with a stranger. In Cana's case that type of stories had some... elements that Lucy didn't really want to hear. Therefore, Cana loved talking about every detail.

"Pervert."

"Healthy young woman," Cana grinned, "And it is better for him to avoid me. I have a pepper spray in my bag, just in case some fine young man is too impressed with my divine body. "

Lucy smiled involuntarily. For some reason she could believe that Cana held in her school bag a bottle of a pepper spray, next to a lavender-scented deodorant and hair brush.

"What about your romantic adventure of a lifetime?"

"Attacking a boyfriend and showing him that I'm beautiful, strong and independent can be a romantic beginning, everything is a matter of approach."

"With this attitude, I'm afraid you'd hit in the wrong approach."

Before Cana could charm her by another brilliant piece of advice on impressing men, Lucy heard the horn which she had easily recognized. She looked up quickly and saw that Mr. Caprico was sitting in their silver Mercedes, parked next to the curb. He waited patiently for her. There was no sign of the hooded boy.

"I gotta go," said Lucy, "Don't let anybody hurt you now just by looking at your ever so 'divine body', tomorrow we have English."

"Of course, how could I miss English lesson ..." Cana said in a mocking manner, showing tongue and waved goodbye. Lucy only smiled.

When you came from the Private School For Talented Girls in Magnolia, students picked up from the school by some fancy smack car wasn't anything special. In fact, most usually return home in cars a lot more expensive than her elegant Mercedes. Nevertheless, even the passage of years didn't stop the delicate twinge of irritation that Lucy had always felt when she settled down in the back seat of the car, throwing her bag casually beside her. The Mercedes reminded her of slightly the larger and more luxurious stroller, she was waiting with impatience until Mr. Caprico gives her a huge bib with embroidered duck. Maybe if she had her own car it would feel differently, but being getting picked up from school every day at the age of seventeen was humiliating for her.

"Are you all right, Miss?" Mr. Caprico asked, glancing at her using the car mirror.

"Sure," Lucy replied indifferently.

"It looks like you are stressed, Miss," said Mr. Caprico, "You should go somewhere with miss Cana. But of course it's just my suggestion."

Mr. Caprico has been the butler in Heartfillia family ever since Lucy could remember. Cana, however, had always said that he looked a lot more like a secret agent and after a careful deliberation Lucy admitted that her friend was right. Mr. Caprico was in his sixties, but yet he was better built than many security guards standing at the gate of a fashionable night clubs. What's more is that Lucy had never seen him dressed outside of his traditional black butler coat and was willing to bet on her life that he even wore it when bathing. Besides, Mr. Caprico had another unusual habit - wearing sunglasses if there were even a drop of sunlight leaking between clouds -meaning that he haven't parted from the tinted glasses for over three whole months. Lucy knew that the majority of students had taken him as her bodyguard, not a butler. It didn't bother her. She suspected that at least ten students from her school had been receiving actual professional bodyguards.

As soon as the school building was gone from her eyes, Lucy stopped thinking about the man who appeared earlier. The English essay waiting for her was at least on something more modern, but the topic was boring. Lucy leaned back and started to read a book. After few minutes she was completely withdrawn from the real world, lost in the fictional universe of the novel. Enchanted, she tasted every word, events flashing by her eyes. Of course, somewhere in the very back of her mind Lucy knew that it was a story that had been conjured up by someone rolling in their bedroom, something like a simple fairy tale, yet she couldn't help but feel like the book was real -like she was part of it. Therefore involuntarily she sighed with a smile, when the main character was taught how to dance the minuet by a very handsome boy, in which she had previously fallen in love. She came back to reality to the sound of Mr. Caprico's voice.

"Excuse me, Miss, but we are home. So I suggest you take the book and finish reading in your room."

Lucy jumped, hitting the roof of the car before falling awkwardly on the seat. Mr. Caprico, standing near and opening the door for her, didn't say anything nor scold her about ladylike manners. But Lucy could sworn that his eyebrow, hidden behind the the dark layers of his sunglasses, twitched slightly. Cursing inwardly, Lucy grabbed the bag and slipped out right next to Mr. Caprico, this time successfully avoiding the fall.

"Thanks, as usual," she said again, but before she could leave the man suddenly grabbed hold of her hand. Lucy's eyes widened in surprise, but her butler's face remained in a stoic manner.

"I'm sorry to ask again," he said slowly, "But I would like to make sure. Your thoughts seem to scamper in different places, Miss. Is everything all right? "

Lucy nodded quickly.

"Yes, the best ..."

She stopped and this time Mr. Caprico very clearly raised his eyebrows. Lucy quickly scolded herself. It's wasn't anything bad happened. Of course nothing happened, everyone could stand where they wanted. And dress what they liked. No bomb exploded. And yet ... Lucy never believed in intuition, but she couldn't call it differently. For some reason she felt that something was wrong. Or will be wrong. Certainly something was wrong.

But what should she say now? In an instant, the peacefulness on Mr. Caprico's face was replaced by a look of anxiety and concern.

_Well, I'm sorry,_ Lucy thought to herself, _but today I saw someone, I don't know who he was, he didn't do anything suspicious, didn't break any law, but I persuaded myself that he was weird, and I don't know why._

"Everything is fine," said Lucy, smiling as gently as she could. She fake smiled, trying to make her face light up. "I'm just a little tired, it was a tough day. Why do you ask?"

"Without a reason," said Mr. Caprico letting go of her hand, once again undisturbed like a statue, "You are a little pale, Miss. In my opinion -and no disrespect, you should go to your room and rest."

"Thank you," she said quickly, looking away, and before Mr. Caprico could stop her she ran as fast as she could.

* * *

For Lucy the evening was fairly quiet. Secluded in her room, where no one bothered her, she was reading her novel and a history book, taking turns with them. She received messages from Cana, from which she learned that her friend reached home safely without any sign of stalkers. She checked.

Mr. Caprico appeared in her room only once, asking her to come down for dinner. When she went to the dining room she found only one plate, which didn't specifically surprised her. However, for reasons of politeness she asked the woman serving a meal why her father hadn't eat with her. The maid explained with an apologetic smile that he had been very busy today and she had to bring the dinner to the office. Lucy nodded and agreed that enjoying a meal alone is generally better.

The rest of the evening was spent doing homework.

* * *

"This is... ridiculous!" exclaimed Rustyrose dramatically, vigorously raised his hand and touched his forehead, then did another swing, more energetic. So energetic that if Cana didn't dodge in time he would probably knock her out.

"Can you repeat that, my little nymph?"

"I... I couldn't find a third interpretation? I mean... This poem is so deep and... and good... so intrrpreting..."

Lucy was sitting in a class and attentively listening to the interpretation of the poem given by Mr. Rustyrose on homework the day before. She was sure that no girl had a clue about what they were even talking about. Lucy couldn't blame them - she wrote a third interpretation in the Mercedes. In those small times she was happy that she didn't have a driving license.

Rustyrose adjusted his glasses in some dramatic gesture, sighing theatrically. Lucy felt sorry for Cana. English lessons could be very easy - schoolgirls just had to talk about love and war, because no matter what their stupid intuition was telling them, most of the poems were about love or war. Either of the two. At least Rustyrose tried to convince them... teach them it. He was famous at school because he was a fanatic and decided to spread the beauty of poetry. Oh, and because he had stupid hairstyle. However, any attempst to ignore his subject - such as a forgotten notebook - was treated like a personal grudge against him and punished. And Cana didn't write an essay, which could be compared only with a knife in the back.

"My little lady," he began, leaning dangerously over her. Cana gulped so loudly that Lucy could hear it, "Interpretation is not a carrot at the market that you are not to be able to find. This is art. Poetry!"

Rustyrose raised his hand as if he was about to finish a prom queen speech. However, he had only adjusted his glasses once again. And he did it so quickly that for a moment Lucy was firmly convinced that he would break that perfectly thin glass on his nose. She snorted to herself, what Rustyrose, of course, immediately noticed.

"And you, Miss Heartfillia?" he said menacingly, measuring with his finger like with a gun, "How do you read this line?"

"Well, the first sheet is definitely love. A dove can symbolize eternal feelings," Lucy said firmly. When she was watching "Cinderella" she saw doves on the wedding. It _had_ to mean something.

Mr. Rustyrose nodded slowly.

"Well, what else?"

"A war. The white dove is a symbol of peace, of course, so it can be concluded that the lyrical subject prays for peace..."

"And the third?"

"The... exile...?" Lucy was no longer so sure, but she thought that the word "exile" is tragic and fits, "Birds are free and travel to accordingly to their heart's desire, and the lyrical subject is... undercut? Or in a cage... I think..."

Mr. Rustyrose clapped his hands, and Lucy wasn't sure if it meant bravo, or maybe he wanted to grind her with a meat grinder because she destroyed his beauty line. Her fear evaporated when she heard his voice, full of enthusiasm.

"Beautifully! The exile... tormented by wild winds, looking for its nest - home, safe! - It's destroyed by storms, seeking for a shelter across the ocean! "

"The doves didn't fly across the sea," Cana interrupted, rolling her eyes.

"Miss Heartfillia is..."

Lucy never found out what she was, because the words of Rustyrose were drowned by a wild howl of a mechanical device. The girls looked at each other puzzled, some covering their ears, others whispering louder than usual, and Rustyrose seemed to be as surprised as the rest.

"What are these annoying howling harpies?" he asked, not directing this to anyone in particular.

Jenny Realight was the first to move. She gracefully flipped her blond hair and, to the surprise of the others, began to pack up. Seeing the puzzled looks she only shrugged her shoulders.

"This is a fire alarm. Evacuation. "

"Evacuation?" cried Rustyrose disgusted, "I wasn't told about any alarm..."

Then there was silence. Mr. Rustyrose seemed to be deeply dismayed and girls sat on the seats, waiting patiently for guidance. Of course except for Jenny, who had already packed her belongings into a nice bag with tiger motif, whispering something about the conditions of education in today's paid schools.

Cana leaned. It was hard to figure out what she was thinking. Something between disbelief, amusement and a slight tension. Corners of her mouth twitched.

"Well, you have your terrorist."

"This is not a drill?"

"I doubt it, sir," Lucy told Rustyrose.

"So what are you waiting for! Evacuation! "

Evacuation. The word had immediately shaken the girls out of their trance. Lucy discovered with surprise that in such moments their nature shone through. Some girls safely packaged their belongings, others dropped everything and ran away. Some remembered calmly the rules and steps that had been drilled in their heads since a small child, others just panicked. Lucy felt a strong tug. Cana shook her.

"Gosh, why are you sitting? Go! "

Before Lucy could say anything Cana grabbed her bag and pulled her. She looked around quickly. Rustyrose shouted something to the girls still sitting in the classroom, then looked at Lucy briefly and waved to join the rest.

The hallway was so crowded that Lucy felt shoved and pushed like a ball in a game of piggy in the middle. If Cana didn't catch her she have would fallen onto the cold ground and trampled by a swarm of screeching females. She muttered a quick thanks, but Cana was still pushing her, like a sack. Lucy didn't see any fire, but clearly smelled the smoke. So the alarm wasn't just a mistake.

Once, long time ago, her father had let her go to a rock concert. She knew that most people had been delighted, with all the buzzing and laughing. However, she had felt overwhelmed. The participants had been shouting and pushing her and Lucy for the first time wanted to be at home. The atmosphere in the hall during the evacuation reminded her of the event.

"This way," Cana breathed heavily.

She spun next to the large bathroom and ran toward the stairs. Here, too, was a mass of people, and all over were just throngs of females literally flowing downwards. Lucy, gradually regaining mental clarity, wasn't pulled by Cana, but keeping pace.

"Better?" said Cana. Lucy could only admire her for being able to smile in this situation.

"A little."

"You should work on your spontaneous reactions. It can save your life someday."

Lucy only nodded quickly. She noticed the escape door. Rushing towards it as her hand clutched the handle desperately, she twisted the knob openly and threw her body at it, forcing the rusty door to open. Finally fresh air found its way towards her lungs. The tension decreased slightly, but her heart was pounding in her chest so loud, she feared that others could hear. Cana coughed heavily, Lucy gasped. They stopped running and felt weary.

"There," Lucy pointed. Cana followed her gaze and saw the same thing; somewhere in the back of the school volatilize smoke.

"At least it's not a bomb."

"Wait and see."

The school yard was the opposite of the definition of 'peaceful'. Schoolgirls jostled in panic, teachers shouted to one another and somewhere in the distance a siren wailed. Lucy couldn't get over all this chaos - after hearing so many proper evacuation procedures? Apparently some things were easy to forget in the face of a real threat. But she wasn't really calm either…

They began to wade through the crowd of people when Lucy felt someone's hand tightening on her hand. Cana was few steps ahead of her, sliding and dodging through. She didn't look back. Lucy swallowed hard and reluctantly turned away. She couldn't scream -oh, she tried, but all came out were quiet muffled sounds as a boy's hand covered her mouth. It was that stranger, the same she saw the day before. Now, at a time where panic filled the air, people just decided not to pay attention to a boy dragging away a schoolgirl.

"Trust me, please."

A woman? Though Lucy never had any reason to believe a stranger was a man, for some reason she automatically assumed it. She couldn't see her face hidden under the hood, but standing in front of her the girl nervously bit her lip, so hard that Lucy wouldn't be surprise if the blood flowed. She whispered something that Lucy wasn't able to understand because of the noise, and gently pulled her.

So far, Lucy knew it mainly from books. From time to time the heroine made quite stupid and incomprehensible decisions, because she knew that she should trust the person she just met. Of course, in the story that could be quite simple explanation of illogical procedure. The writer didn't have to bother and convincing the heroine of the rightness of her decision, so it was just a hunch. But now Lucy felt exactly like this. The voice of the girl, her smell, her aura - if such a thing actually existed - all told Lucy that she should trust her. Or at least listen to her. Reluctantly, she moved.

The girl led her quickly to the fence, completely ignoring all the precaution. When she was pushing people her black cloak flapped, but no one seemed to care. Moving away farther and farther, Lucy wondered if she should remind that person that she couldn't stay too far away, soon people would start counting the students and checking if no one was in the school. After a short deliberation with herself she decided to not comment - during the fire she went somewhere with a strange woman, it was enough.

The hooded stranger finally stopped when she reached the tennis courts. They were completely empty as everybody else had gathered in the large square in front of the school.

_Great, now she's going to pull out a gun and shove me in a potato sack. _But the stranger merely turned to her and just slowly pulled down the hood.

Lucy froze. She blinked once, twice, she opened her mouth in a futile attempt to say something -_anything_, but her voice stuck in her throat. She told herself it was a dream, that there were some sort of logic behind this, but in reality she knew that her eyes weren't mistaken. It was not a prank. It was real.

The woman was tall with longer hair than Lucy herself at the moment with expressive.

Lucy was looking at someone who looked like herself. She was indeed looking at herself.

From the future.


	2. Future & Library

I hate writing the beginnings... I always feel they are too boring. But just wait, soon the action is going to be much faster than now~

I'm sorry for a late update. However, because of school I'm not able to write faster, I need to focus on other things. Still, enjoy. If you like it maybe you can leave some feedbacks? It's really motivating ;)

* * *

Shock. It took over her body, paralyzing it with surprises. It felt as if someone poured a bucket of cold water on her head. Thoughts swirled around in her head and began to spill over, causing slightly shaking hands, fast heartbeat and unpleasant feeling in a stomach.

The woman standing in front of Lucy resembled her - no, she was her. Even in the family there was a limit of how people could be similar to each other. The woman in a black coat had the same face features, nose, mouth, hair. There were also a few differences - she seemed to be much slimmer, or at least Lucy guessed so because of the prominent cheekbones and how the coat was so loose that it perfectly hid her body. Her skin was the color of gray paper, pale and sickly, the lips were chapped with greasy hair. And those eyes! –the eyes, wide and decorated with dark circles that were rare to see on Lucy herself.

Still, Lucy felt like she was looking in a mirror. There were mirrors used in amusement parks. It showed a distorted form of reality, but still familiar and true. Maybe it was the only reason why she run away screaming. What she felt was far from fear -it was more like an intoxication which came together with a large dose of painkillers. Sure, she was speechless with shaking knees at the moment, but she thought she was dealing with it pretty well when compared to others if put in her current situation. If it was somebody else, this would be traumatic.

Of course, there still was the slight chance that Lucy, herself, has gone crazy and started hallucinating. She had read up somewhere that the first signs of schizophrenia happened during adolescence.

She decided to think about it later.

Apparently Lucy's knees were shaking a little harder than she thought, because the woman - the older one- stepped forward and held her as if she was afraid that present Lucy could pass out at any moment. And probably she wasn't mistaken, because Lucy swayed dangerously. When the thin fingers tightened on her shoulder, Lucy noticed that the woman was also shaking.

Finally, Lucy spoke (the younger one, mind you), trying to keep the relative peace.

"Who are you? Not my mother, right?"

Despite the strange wording, the question was pretty obvious. Lucy took after her mother and many people had commented how she was the perfect copy of her, what indeed was confirmed by the pictures. Either that the genes on the female side of the family were dominant or the ghost of mother had some unfinished business and returned to talk to Lucy. The thought was stupid itself.

The corners of her mouth twitched slightly, as if she was uncertain. But then all of a sudden, on her face appeared a faint smile. Lucy knew her interlocutor was pretty young, but on the girl's face was strange wrinkles around her mouth as she appeared to take difficulty smiling.

It was as if she hadn't done so for a long time.

Lucy was even more dumbfounded than before. A bit angry as she felt belittled in such a shocking and serious moment, she opened her mouth to ask for the cause of the smile. Instead what came out was entirely different.

"Your hand! You ...?"

Previously she didn't notice as the cloak had concealed the rest of the body quite well, but when the older Lucy had lifted gently her left hand, she saw that the right sleeve hung limp, causing her to be suspicious that it was empty.

The older woman in front of her was missing a hand. Lucy froze and remained silent out of fear and confusion. It gnawed at her heart, making her reluctant to hear the details.

Her older version saw the expression and her face turned serious once more. She shook her head in a gesture that Lucy couldn't understand, and for the first time, looked directly into her eyes with an inescapable gaze. Lucy shuddered as a shiver ran through her spine. She already noticed that her interlocutor's eyes were strange, empty and absent, but at the same time familiar, and not just because of the warm walnut color.

She still remembered the white walls in the oncology ward. Her mother had been lying in a private hospital, but that didn't change anything. The soiled shade of white covered the corridors, the pungent odor of drugs and diverse chemical compounds irritated the nose and the people were as emaciated as in any oncology in this world. That was the picture she remembered. Consequently, the striking green flowers and embroidered curtain, designed to brighten the place didn't improve the climate. On the contrary, it contrasted with the grim, dark mood set upon the people. One day Lucy had stepped timidly into the room and found her mom sitting on the bed, her face turned towards the window. She didn't move an inch and had absently asked Lucy to sit next to her.

She sat. Her mother leaned over her and gave a hug. Somewhat frightened, she readied herself to blurt out the whole stream of consolation, reassurance that everything will be fine, that they go through this together, that there is nothing to fear. But when she had looked closer and deeper into the words, they became invalid. In her eyes Lucy had seen the sadness, so deep that even tears couldn't come.

They were mixed however. With care. It was then had Lucy realized the source of her pain. Her mother wasn't afraid of death, but was worried about her. She had been ready long ago for Death to come by with his hooded cape and all, but her daughter wasn't.

And the other Lucy looked at her the same way. As if she was afraid that her own actions would somehow ruin the life of her younger version.

And so Lucy blinked her eyes frantically, trying to take hold of herself as she fought the numbness and attempted to organize her swirling thoughts. Instead, emptiness over took her, along with confusion and fear before a major migraine took control of her mind.

The older Lucy reluctantly let her go and stepped back. She gave her an apologetic, sad smile.

"No, I'm not mother, I am... "

She paused, and, if it was even possible, turned even paler. Lucy noticed the woman was involuntarily moving her tired lips. In her very own mind she could almost see herself in the same shoes, wondering what to say and stacking up previously the shortest and lightest speeches, and now, unable to utter a word. Then, something in her caught on slightly.

"You are me, right? I think so, so I guess I should have a little more courage."

The older Lucy for a moment seemed to be quite surprised. And then she smiled sadly again and her cheeks became slightly flushed. With a sigh, shook her head.

"I almost forgot who I was, who you are now... and what I was before." she paused and looked her before taking another slow, deep breath. "Listen to me carefully Lucy, I'm from the future, and you... you can travel through time."

Time travels. Coming from the future. Lucy's first impulse was to smile and make light of this. She felt like she should just laugh it off and calmly –while addressing to the woman as if she was absurd –question her sanity before turning around and leaving the scene. She opened her mouth and closed it repeatedly, wondering what to do before she finally admitted, somewhere deep deep inside of her, that it was true. There was clearly living proof here. Though the spoken words still didn't make much sense to Lucy herself, at least there was some sort of explanation to the current situation.

Now her interlocutor didn't give her time to think. She was speaking too fast, pausing and taking long breaks.

"Right now I can't tell you too much, but I really want to –trust me! Er, you. However, I have my reasons, and I believe you will understand them later!" she said desperately, as if willing her younger version to believe and nod along to her words. Again, she took her time to breathe and calm down. "Seven years. And you will lose everything you love."

"What? Why? Everything I love –What?"

"You have to listen to me –please!"

"W-What?" stammered Lucy. When the words hung in the air she felt a cold shiver going through her again. The older Lucy was deadly serious. This was serious.

"You have to open the Twelve Gates to travel. This will give you an access to the Thirteenth Gate, the unlimited travel in time," older Lucy spluttered, as if the world could end any moment. She then bit her lip as her face relaxed into a saddened expression. "There are people who will use time travel for malicious purposes. You can't let that happen, do you understand?"

"What people?" Lucy asked, startled, "What are you talking about?"

Twelve Gates? Unlimited time travels? It was as if her head was some sort of blender where the woman would throw in random and crazy ingredients.

"Ahh," the older version of Lucy sighed out of exasperation. "I do want to tell you now –I really do and I know how frustrating this might be, but I can't tell you now!"

"Why?!" Lucy asked again, "Can't you...?"

The older Lucy raised a hand as if to silence her.

"You will find more information in your mother's library. At the moment, I can tell you that each one of the Gates is protected by the Guard... You have to trust them. Whatever happens, you have to trust them. Sometimes it will be difficult and there will be moments when you lose your faith, but remember about my words. The Guards are here to help you. You can't doubt them for a moment!"

Her voice seemed to strengthen, along with an edge of hysterical panic. However, in her words she put had so much determination that Lucy didn't have any second thoughts. She would always remember them and it was quite possible the words would even haunt her in her dreams.

"I'm sorry. I know it's hard, but -" she didn't finish. Lucy from the future stopped in mid-sentence, straightening up. She blinked, and although didn't move her head, she looked furtively to the left. Younger Lucy wanted to follow her gaze, but before she could do anything the second one hissed softly and moved her lips silently. Lucy guessed that it meant 'no'.

Lucy felt a cold sweat on her forehead. In fact she didn't know what scared the woman, but she read enough books to assume that it was something really bad. And the tensed face of the older Lucy didn't helped to change her mind. She was tempted to look aside, but the self-preservation was screaming in her head so she decided to stop.

"I can't say much, because each piece of information can change the future and I'm not able to predict what consequences these changes will lead. That's why you need to find the rest alone. You have to live your live so you won't lose something important..." Lucy from the future sighed and embraced her tightly.

Future Lucy moved back slightly, placing a hand on her back as if in farewell. Her eyes welled up, threatening to spill as her nose scrunched slightly –she couldn't cry, but yet she was so sure at any moment she would start bawling. Sheepishly returning the hug as she tried her best to compose herself, older Lucy whispered urgently in her ear,

"Somebody is watching us. Get out of here and find Yukino Aguria."

When she moved aside her face expressed no emotion. Lucy opened her mouth, deciding it's time to finally ask a question, but her interlocutor stopped her by raising her hand once again.

"You can't open the door until you find another Traveler. Now it's your job. Goodbye, my younger self. I believe in you," she said with a slight smile and turned away.

"Wait... Lucy..." Lucy shouted uncertain, but the woman put the hood and without stopping, she walked toward the fence.

Lucy wasn't sure whether she should run or chase her, but then she thought about the order to escape and hesitatingly she went toward the school, without looking back.

* * *

For Lucy the rest of the afternoon was like a waking dream. She didn't even remember how she reached the school yard. She only knew that Lucy from the future had ordered to get away quickly, so she ran as fast as he could, until someone stopped her. Despite the fire no one was hurt, but some girls were still crying and howling like children. Lights flashed from the fire truck, blinding her eyes.

She must have looked terrible, because a firefighter sat her on the stone ledge and brought over a blanket. After all, they were still daughters of the rich and powerful families and the whole "rescue team" treated them like glass dolls. People were walking around her, asking about her health, comforting and calming, which really wasn't necessary at the moment –they seemed to be panicking more than her. The doctor examined her carefully, though at first glance it was obvious that she wasn't wounded.

When Lucy was sitting in the shadow, feeling on her face the spring breeze, for the first time she thought that maybe it was all just a dream. What if the fire was caused by some strange gas that had poisoned her? She read a lot about such things in the newspapers. Or maybe stress? Stress could be an easy response to each question. Lucy lay down on the ledge, feeling the hard and rough stone under her head and began to look at the clouds, flowing lazily across the sky. It certainly was true, it was part of the world. Or maybe not? She was sleepy and could just close her eyes, sleeping with screams as a lullaby, if she felt arms wrapping around her neck.

"Lucy, damn it! Where have you been? I was worried about you! You idiot..."

Cana's dark brown hair covered Lucy's face, bringing her back to reality. Her friend knelt on the grass next to Lucy, squeezing her in a tight and protective embrace.

Lucy smiled involuntarily. It was wonderful that even when her world fell apart, she still had some immutable things that she could hold onto. At least for a while.

* * *

The Heartfillia's library didn't even look like a library. It was more like a maze, equipped with a labyrinth composed of the endless rows of books and impressive ceiling-high heavy shelves. Lucy wouldn't be surprised if one day their butler found her thin and exhausted body, lying somewhere in the room, lost in her own home. In fact, such a death would even fit her. Lucy always thought that with her bad luck she would end up dead in the most bizarre ways.

Lucky Lucy they had called her. Oh, the irony.

Her mother had been collecting books for many years, dedicating large sums of money and time. Although the memories related to it were hazy, she still remembered the quiet conversations full of grievances that had always taken place when her parents were sure she wasn't around. Her father had thought that the library was a waste, but mother stayed persistent. She started off with the classics, over time expanding the collection of rare and antique books –first editions. Then she had dreamed of a separate room where she could create a home for her books. Back then when they had moved into the huge mansion where Lucy had lived until today, she chose the largest room as the official library. It had been the one and only time in her life when Lucy saw her mother relaxed. The room had been renovated; the walls decorated with elaborate paintings - even the ceiling were adorned with beautiful fresco. Mom had told her it was a famous painter's reconstruction, but his name couldn't come to Lucy at the moment. Now she regretted deeply for not asking.

When Lucy from the future - for her own peace of mind Lucy believed her experience with her was to be true and not a dream (at least for now) - had said that the answers could be found in mother's library, it seemed to be a lot easier. Actually, she even liked it, the thought of some great secrets being hidden in books and old letters. If her mother had known about any secret information she wouldn't find a better place than the library. Lucy felt like a heroine from a book, standing at the beginning of the road to the great adventure. However, the gradually increasing excitement abruptly stopped and fell to its death when she started to think about an action plan. She was aware that the library was huge, but now she fully realized the enormity of the challenge. Searching was impossible. There were thousands of books –and that was in contrast to the respectable national libraries Lucy didn't have some mean librarian wearing the thick-rimmed glasses with nails like a tiger, nor did she even have something as basic as an index. Maybe her mother in some way had segregated the books, but now Lucy had no point of reference.

She decided to start with the simplest method. Lucy didn't even know what she was looking for, so she started to wander around the shelves and watch the spines of the books. Most of them were ancient –complete with grey book covers with blank titles and pages falling out. However, she also found books in bright colors, standing out like neon flowers in a grassy plain field. Lucy carefully checked each anomaly and her heart beat faster every time she took out a new book covered in dust. Each time, again and again she felt a painful disappointment, because until now she had discovered only completely unnecessary medical books. She couldn't even recall the fact that her mother found this subject matter of interest, not to mention that the images were poor. So far, she only learnt a whole bunch about botany, geology and geography and found a new edition of Dostoyevsky. Unfortunately, there weren't any books that could of use to her in completing her 'mission'. No books for titled with something like "Twelve Gates and Time Travel" or "To My Dearest Daughter, Lucy," sadly.

Because of her obvious failure she changed her tactic – to check everything that her hands could touch. Maybe the new books were far too obvious and easy to find, so the answer was hidden in volumes that were old enough to be Casear's 10th birthday present. Lucy with a newfound burst zeal decided encouraged herself with the thought of how life was never easy. However, this method had another major obstacle - it was labor intensive. Lucy didn't rush too much, in the end according to the words of her future self she still had the whole seven years to prepare the plan. But checking hundreds of books in search of potential letter hidden between the pages was so very tempting that her enthusiasm decreased again.

Therefore, Lucy sat idly on the couch, surrounded by books, and meditated. There had to be some logical explanation. If Lucy from the future didn't tell her anything concrete she had to know that finding the answer couldn't be that difficult. Then why had nothing came to mind? All she had given her were guesswork and missing messages that she couldn't find.

Lucy once pushed away all doubt. Maybe her mother had mentioned something about time travel? Gates? She had no reasonable plan C, so decided to browse through the memory in search of stories from her childhood. Was there a Brothers Grimm faerie tale about twelve months? Yes, Lucy nodded, something like that. Mother had been a great storyteller, she knew stories and legends from around the world. It was proven multiple times as she had always sat on Lucy's bedside told them from memory, without stuttering. Unfortunately at the moment, Lucy couldn't remember anything.

"It is rare to see you in here, Miss."

Lucy jumped, the book falling from her lap with a dull slap –easily heard in such a quiet room. In the air appeared a cloud of dust as Lucy turned around in surprise. Mr. Caprico stood quietly beside her couch and didn't seem to be abashed. It was amazing that such a powerfully built man was able to move so silently, Lucy thought. There had to be some sort of special gift or ability possessed only by butlers.

Lucy bit her lip in thought before her face relaxed in faked cheerful expression immediately.

"Mr. Caprico!" she perked, "I wanted to visit the library and read mom's books. You know, sometimes I miss her... "she explained, making appropriate pauses for better effect.

Should she blink as well, pretending to prevent tears? No, it didn't suit her, but it was certainly dramatic. So she just ostentatiously turned her head, feigning thoughtfulness.

She couldn't see Mr Caprico, but didn't hear any sound suggesting his leave, the need for solitude not properly read. Reluctantly she looked back at the butler. In fact, Mr. Caprico stood like a broom, watching Lucy. At least she assumed so, she couldn't see his eyes. She had always known to not trust guys wearing sunglasses indoors.

"I didn't know that Miss is interested in the Latin countries economy," he said with utmost seriousness.

"It's my homework," said Lucy firmly, adding quickly, "Well, of course, in these books I feel the spirit of my mom, it's so beautiful."

She clutched the book tightly to her body as if in some sort of loving embrace. Bad mistake. The old tome was still quite dusty - how much dust could there possibly be between the pages? What if the pages fell apart in dust? Whatever the reason, Lucy began to sneeze loudly, practically spitting economy. Mr. Caprico gave her an embroidered handkerchief.

"Here, Miss."

Perhaps the butler job was not just a profession, and more like a style of thinking? What man carries some elegant handkerchief nowadays? Lucy thought that it was very nice, and the cute embroidered flowers were a great plus. However, catarrh won the fight with admiration because she blew her nose loudly.

"I got a headache, I think I've caught a cold," she sighed, "Can you give me some aspirin?"

Lucy had nothing against Mr. Caprico, she even liked him. But she couldn't tell him that she was a Time Traveler, unless she wanted to be taken and locked up in some asylum. And she knew that being constantly observed and lying would be quite annoying, so she preferred to get rid of him now.

Mr. Caprico nodded in silence.

"Of course I'll bring you the adequate medicine, Miss. I assume, however, that first you would like to hear some answers."

"What?" Lucy panicked, her eyes widening as her blond hair whipped around, her heart skipping a beat and pounding loudly in her ears. She gulped a bit, giggling at her own awkward foolishness of jumping to conclusions. "What kind of answers?"

"You don't know?" now Mr. Caprico was the one who appeared to be surprised, "You'd want to know something about time travel, right Miss?"


End file.
